User:Andry Heidrich/My Utopia of Postcapitalism

My Utopia of Postcapitalism

Leaning on to Fully Automated Luxury Communism

1          Introduction:

As a member of IG Metall, I regularly attended seminars. In the seminar “Think Globally – Act Locally,” the time had come. We discussed the way in which workers create value, based on Karl Marx's critique of political economy. One day, when we were taking a closer look at the value creation of workers within a company using the example of the production of the Volkswagen T5, my thoughts wandered to a question that has always fascinated me: Is capitalism abolishing itself? This train of thought was based on the following scenario: What would happen if there were free access to “infinite” energy and resources in the world, and production facilities were fully automated? I tried to link this idea to current developments in the world.

It is already well known that the Earth's resources are limited and that the trend is moving toward a primary sector based on sustainable raw materials. However, a primary sector that draws entirely on sustainable raw material sources would still lack resources such as rare earths and non-renewable raw materials. But even in this sub-sector of the primary sector, a trend can be observed: numerous space companies and start-ups are toying with the idea of obtaining non-renewable resources from the solar system. The science fiction series “The Expanse” offered me one possible glimpse of what this might look like in the future. In a solar system 400 years in the future, there are not only humans on Earth, but the moon has been colonized (among other things, to mine resources for nuclear fusion), Mars has been colonized, and the asteroid belt has huge space stations that mine rare earths from asteroids.

Assuming that the primary sector provides infinite resources, value creation remains based on the simple availability (supply) of basic resources.

However, the price of a product is not determined solely by the availability of the resources it contains or processes. Another point is already contained in the word “processing.” Production, i.e., the conversion of resources into usable products, accounts for another part of a product's value.

Current trends can also be identified here. The pursuit of full automation of production facilities means that more and more jobs are being replaced by machines. Machines do not need wages, can work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and, unless they need maintenance or repair, do not suffer from downtime. So if a production facility can process resources into products fully automatically, what would still constitute the value of a product?

The last justifiable reason for attributing value to a product is the energy expenditure that incurs costs during production. And here, too, a trend can be observed. With ITER, the EU is researching a nuclear fusion reactor that, as already described in the second paragraph, relies on resources that are abundant on Earth and in our solar system. The expansion of solar power plants on Earth is also accelerating, which in the future will be able to provide energy in infinite quantities.

So if the supply of these products is available to humanity on such a large scale that demand can always be met, humanity will find itself in a future where no product has any value and can be obtained free of charge.

2          The foundation of capitalism

The foundation of capitalism is based on a market in which goods are offered for sale. These goods not only meet needs but also desires. People who sell products or services in this market hope to earn their own money by selling these goods, which they can then use to meet and fulfill their own needs and desires.

3          The creation of value

The value of a product depends on the perspective from which its value is determined. Unlike exchange value, use value can be considered independent of the market. If it is warm in summer, a coat has less use value than in winter. This is because the purpose of a coat is to keep someone warm. Although it is cheaper to buy a coat at the market in summer than in winter, this has no influence on the actual use of the coat, i.e., keeping someone warm. Therefore, the exchange value for the market cannot be directly derived from the use value of a commodity.

What determines the value of a commodity on the market depends on the abstract working time invested in production, advertising, and supply chain of the product. For example, the value of a car includes the hours of work invested by workers in purchasing, development, production, and sales. A two-ton car therefore requires significantly more working time than it takes a farmer to produce two tons of flour. This is one of two factors that determine the exchange value of a commodity.

A commodity can also change its value on the market independently of the working time invested. Continuing with the example from the previous paragraph, in a world where wheat is only available in small quantities, it is possible that the high demand for bread, coupled with the low supply of wheat, could significantly increase in value, even exceeding the exchange value of a car.

In summary, a commodity has a value that is determined by the cost of the labor time required and production processes, depending on supply and demand. When the commodity is sold on the market, the seller receives money, which the seller can then use to become a consumer themselves. Although this is part of the foundation on which capitalism is built on, this system existed before capitalism. (Capital: A Critique of Political Economy. Volume I: The Process of Capitalist Production, 1909, pp. 22–32)

3.1         Surplus

After explaining in the previous section how goods are assigned value and how the market functions in this regard, it is important to mention the fundamental difference that defines capitalism. Until now, goods had a value that could be exchanged for money, which in turn could be used to purchase goods of the same value: goods – money – goods (G – M – G). The crux of capitalism lies in surplus value. Capitalists try to make more money out of money (M – G – M').

3.2         Labour in capitalism

In capitalism, labor is also seen as a commodity. Its value is defined by the investments that labor needs to make itself fit for work again. This is also called reproduction. For example, if a person works eight hours a day, they have to pay money to cover food and accommodation. Indirect factors also play a role. Raising and caring for children, i.e., the next generation of workers, is also part of this. The costs of reproduction determine the wage. This is an essential component of capitalism.

This differs from systems such as slavery or serfdom in the sense that workers can voluntarily choose to take on work. Even before capitalism, there were “employees.” However, they did not have their own salaries with which they could freely seek other jobs. In addition, it is a condition that workers do not own any significant means of production. This is mainly because workers are not wanted to reproduce independently of the production facilities. Under capitalism, workers must be dependent on receiving wages by securing their existence. (Capital: A Critique of Political Economy. Volume I: The Process of Capitalist Production, 1909, pp. 104–144)

3.2.1        Surplus by labour

As mentioned in the introduction to this section, capitalists try to make more money from money, i.e., to create surplus value. Surplus value is created when the worker works for his own wage and the capitalist's capital. Here is an example to illustrate this:

The capitalist hires a worker for eight hours a day. The worker earns 120 €on that day. With this money, the worker can afford to buy food for 20 €, pay his rent for 20 €, support his family for 50 €, and cover other expenses for 10 €. In the best case scenario, the money is enough for the worker to reproduce sufficiently, i.e., to “recover” so that he can be fit for work again the next day.

The company that employs the worker has a total of five thousand employees. The wages paid by the company each day therefore amount to 600.000 €. In one day, the factory produces 1.000 cars, each of which is sold for 20.000 €. If all cars are sold, the company has a daily turnover of 20.000.000 €. After deducting the wear and tear on the means of production, the energy costs for operating the equipment, the costs of the materials used, and the wages, the profit amounts to 4.000.000 €. On this day, the company has created a new value, i.e., an added value of 4.000.000 €.

The added value arises from the fact that the worker does not work all eight hours in the company for his wage. Assuming that after two hours of work, the company has generated 120 €, the worker's wage is covered, but there are still six hours of working time left. During this time, the worker works exclusively to cover the company's costs and the ultimate added value of the product.

This is described as fixed and variable value. A product is made up of both. Fixed values include costs such as maintenance or purchasing, which are transferred to the product. In the case of the car, this could be a fixed value of 10.000 € euros, for example. In addition to the fixed value of the product, there is also the variable value. These are the costs that are transferred to the product with the worker's wages. Finally, the added value, together with the variable and fixed values, determines the total value of the car. If the worker works more efficiently, i.e., generates more money during their working hours, the company can cover the wages, i.e., the variable costs, and the production costs, i.e., the fixed costs, more quickly. This has the following effect on the product: the added value increases because less working time is invested in each product, the variable value decreases because less wages are transferred to the product, and the fixed value remains the same because the same resources, energy, and machinery are required per product. (Capital: A Critique of Political Economy. Volume I: The Process of Capitalist Production, 1909, pp. 104–144)

4          My utopia of postcapitalism

4.1         Value creation in the future

Once the value creation of the goods has been explained, current economic trends are projected onto the future in order to analyze whether there can be a future in which the value-added economy of capitalism can no longer function.

Part of the fixed costs that make up the value of the product are the resources. If the resources are limited, if extracting them is risky, or if there is simply a small amount of resources available, their selling price rises, and so does the share of the fixed value in the end product. What would have to happen for the resources to be available free of charge in infinite quantities for production, so that the purchase price becomes zero?

The added value, including in the procurement of resources, is created by the additional work that an employee performs after he or she has earned his or her wages and all other fixed costs of the company. If the worker is completely replaced by machines, added value in this sense is no longer justifiable.

If there were now unlimited access to the resources that would be created, the fixed value component of the resource would also no longer be justifiable. Current trends show that more and more will be available, from sustainable raw materials to rare earths and energy. Rare earths can be mined in large quantities fully automatically in space thanks to the booming space industry. Energy requirements can be met in infinite quantities by solar energy or other concepts based on nuclear fusion, for example.

Apart from resources, energy consumption, and workers, only the means of production, their maintenance, and development would then incur costs and thus justify the value of a product. However, artificial intelligence could also completely replace humans in development in the future. Maintenance can be carried out by humanoid robots, and the construction of the means of production can be ensured by other means of production, which in turn are manufactured by other means of production.

Once full automation is achieved, combined with space industry and unlimited access to energy, there would no longer be any possibility of products having any value. And since they are available in seemingly infinite quantities, demand and supply would also become obsolete.

We can already see how production capitalism is increasingly being replaced by full automation, and how the largest companies, such as Meta, Google, and Microsoft, generate added value with services. However, they do not generate their profits by satisfying needs and desires, but by selling data. Accordingly, services are available to the end user free of charge.

This projects a post-capitalist future, as needs can be met free of charge. Through complete automation and infinite access to resources, capitalism can make itself redundant through its constant increase in efficiency. One system that could replace it is what I learned is already known as “fully automated luxury communism.”

5          Epilogue

Ever since I first seriously thought about value creation, work, and capitalism at the IG Metall seminar, one thought has stuck with me: What if capitalism really does abolish itself? Not through revolution, but simply because at some point it is no longer needed? I keep coming back to the same idea: What happens when machines take over everything? When resources are abundant, energy is no longer a problem, and production is almost completely automated? It may sound like science fiction at first, but much of it is already within reach. And this is precisely where the idea of fully automated luxury communism comes in. The basic idea is easy to explain: if everything we need—food, housing, energy, clothing, technology—can be produced virtually free of charge because machines take over and there is no longer any scarcity, then money loses its meaning. Why should we still work just to survive? Why have prices or wages at all if there is no longer any real shortage? In this world, work and income would no longer be prerequisites for a good life. The things we have to pay for today would simply be provided—automatically, efficiently, perhaps even more beautifully and better than today. Instead of wage labor, there would be free time. Instead of stress and existential fears: education, creativity, community. People would once again have space to be human—without having to function constantly. That is the core of Fully Automated Luxury Communism. And yes, it sounds radical at first. Luxury for everyone? Without work? But “luxury” here does not necessarily mean golden faucets or three vacations a year – but a life of security, with access to everything you need. Without scarcity, without fear. Without the constant question: How will I pay the rent? What happens if I get sick? Or old? Of course, this vision is not simply a reality. Just because something is technically possible does not mean it will automatically come true. It requires social change. Political will. And probably a lot of discussion. Because anyone who thinks about such a future today quickly encounters resistance – especially from those who benefit from the current system. But developments show that capitalism is reaching its limits. It is rationalizing itself—and could eventually become obsolete. Already today, we can see how fewer people are working in production and how large corporations such as Google, Amazon, and Meta are no longer generating their profits through products, but through data and platforms. And many of the classic rules of how markets work no longer apply as they used to. Fully Automated Luxury Communism is not a fantasy that will come true the day after tomorrow. But it is a direction. An idea of what a fairer, freer future could look like. If we are willing to truly question our idea of what work is – and what it must be worth to us. And perhaps that is exactly what we need right now: a genuine utopia that shows that things can be different.

6          Bibliography

Capital: A Critique of Political Economy. Volume I: The Process of Capitalist Production (Trans. from the 3rd German edition, by Samuel Moore and Edward Aveling, ed. Frederick Engels. Revised and amplified according to the 4th German ed. by Ernest Untermann, Vol. 1). (1909). Charles H. Kerr and Co.